Piston-type cleaner for pipe lines



March 14, 1961 A. c. WHITE 2,974,337

PISTON-TYPE CLEANER FOR PIPE LINES Filed July 21, 1958 mvENToQ. ALV/N c WAI/7E) AT T O RNEYS PISTON-TYPE CLEANER FOR PIPE LINES Alvin C. White, 3517 NE. 21st Ave., Amarillo, Tex.

Filed `luly 21, 1958, Ser. No. 749,704

Z Claims. (Cl. 15-104.06)

of cleaners have been found to be objectionable for one or more reasons of failing to provide the proper flexibility or degree of movement whereby the cleaner can navigate turns in the pipe line and also because of- Vfailure to provide adequate cleaning surfaces for the interior of the pipe. In such applications of cleaning the interior of the pipe line by the cleaning method known as pigging, it must be remembered that the' cleaner is forced through the pipe by the application of tluid pressure, such as pneumatic pressure, and the like, and that no control of the cleaner is possible outside of the points of access which may be spaced miles apart, except the control that is provided by the application of the iluid pressure. Thus, should such a cleaner become jammed in going around a turn or corner of the pipe line, the in-v conveniences will be obvious due to the requirement ofl manually breaking into the pipe after first locating the point of jamming.

By means of the instant invention, there has been provided a pipe line cleaner of the piston type, which has a brush carrying surface and which is provided with means for bending the body of the unit as it traverses turns, and the like. This means is provided through a flexible body supporting the brushes of -the cleaner which are supported therefrom.

In the pipe line cleaner of this invention, the brushes which are carried by the cleaner are disposed in such a manner that the movement of the piston by the application of fluid `force causes the rotation of brushes which are in cylindrical form through their contact with the interior curved surface of the pipe. Thus, the brushes are disposed slightly askew with respect to the laxis of the pipe line cleaner in one plane, while in the other plane their axis is parallel to the axis of the pipe line cleaner. A plurality of brushes are disposed around the periphery f the pipe line and it will be understood that the number of brushes employed may be four or tive, or some other number. It has also been found to be very advantageous to reduce the `friction of the brushes contacting the interior of the pipe line by disposing the brushes in two ranks with the brushes in the second rank disposed rearwardly of the brushes in the first rank and in staggered relation. In this manner, enough brushesare employed, so that when one looks through the interior of the pipe, the interior surface of the pipe is entirely blocked by the contact of the brushes with the interior surface of the pipe. Thus, in this manner, lall surfaces of the pipe are contactedby brush surfaces to insure ,cleaning. In this I United States Patent O ice manner, friction of Ithe brushes with the pipe is also reduced.

5 cleaner is of the piston type and by the appplication of fluid force is caused to move through the pipe and carry Y cylindrical brushes disposed on a supporting member connected to the piston. The movement caused by the application of iluid force causes the brushes to be moved with the piston and, because of the position of the brushes, they are caused to rotate and present fresh cleaning surfaces as they are pulled along. The apparatus is relatively simple in Vform and rugged in construction, and can be employed and serviced by relatively unskilled workmen, which is of great advantage when working in the field. l

Accordingly, a primary object of this invention is to provide a piston-type pipe cleaner which has means for supporting a plurality of cylindrical brushes disposed sligh-tly askew of the axis of the cleaner and which are supported at a plurality of circumferential positions around the axis of the cleaner.

Another object of this invention is to provide a pipe line cleaner having a trailing member for supporting a plurality of brushes in two ranks in which the brushesV are `disposed slightly askew to the axis of the cleaner and are staggered with one another at a plurality of circumferential points around the axis of the cleaner in such a manner that they completely cover the inner surfaces of the pipe to be cleaned.

Still another object of thisinvention is to provide a pipe line cleaner of a piston type having a member connected to it for supporting a plurality of brushes in two ranks with means for turning one rank with respect to another to facilitate movement of the cleaner around curves, and the like.

Still another object of this invention is lto provide a pipe line cleaner of the piston type having a trailing member supporting two ranks of brushes with said member being flexible for twisting and partial pivotal movement of one rank with respect to another.

Yet another object of this invention is to provide a piston-type cleaner with cleaning brushes. thereon, which is simple and rugged in construction and relatively inexpensive in cost, and which can be operated and maintained by unskilled workmen.

lFurther objects of this invention will appear in the detailed description which follows and will vbe further -a-pparent to those skilled in the art.

For the purpose of illustration of this invention, there is shown in the accompanying drawings an embodiment which, it is to be understood, is for the purpose of example only. The invention is not limited to the specific showing in the drawings and may be varied therefrom as will appear to those skilled in the art.

In the drawings:

Figure l is a view in side elevation of this invention taken through the cross section of a pipe line;

vFigure 2 is a view in partial vertical section taken online 2--2 of Figure l but showing the brushes in elevation;

Figure 3 is a view in section taken on the line 3-3 of Figure 2; and Y Figure 4 is an enlarged view in section taken on the line 4--4 of Figure 1, showing the brush constructionV and manner of securing the supporting shaft to the cleaner.

The pipe ycleaner of this invention is shown and gen-v plicity in construction and operation, and a flexible supf ,t

Patented Man 14, 1961,

porting member which can twist and ex in going around corners, and the like.

In Figures 1, 2 and 3, the pipe cleaner 100 is shown disposed within the interior of a pipe line 101. The basic components of the pipe line cleaner include a piston 102, a brush supporting member 103, a plurality of brush supporting shafts S in a first rank, and a plurality of brush supporting shafts 106 in a second or rear rank, and a plurality of brushes 107 in the lirst rank and brushes 103 in the second rank.

The piston 102 as here shown includes two steel plates 111 and 112 which may be affixed to a rubber or resilient sealing disc 113 positioned therebetween. An orifice 114 is provided in the central portion of the piston, and it will be understood that conventional valves may also be employed for the purpose of venting low pressure iluid for the proper operation of the apparatus. A body supporting sleeve element 115 is affixed to the rear of the metal disc 112 as best shown in Figure 2.

The brush supporting member 103, as shown in Figures 1 and 2, is composed primarily of a exible tube having a thick wall section and being open at both ends. The forward end is fastened to the support sleeve 115, while the rear end is also fastened to a rear sleeve element 117.

The support shafts 10S in the front rank of brushes are fastened at one end by conventional means, such as welding or other means, to the sleeve 115. At their rear end they are fastened to the flexible tubing of the brush supporting member 103 by a clip 120 as shown in Figure 4, which is actually a view taken to show the aftixation of the rear or second rank of brushes, it being understood that the manner of atxation is the same for both ranks. The forward shafts 105 have a vertical or radial extending intermediate portion 121 which connects with a straight portion on which the brushes 107 are journaled. These brushes are freely rotatable upon the straight portions of the shaft 122 between stops 123 and 124. It will be understood that the straight portions of the shaft are parallel to the axis of the tubular supporting mernber and the pipe in one plane, while being disposed at an acute angle to the axis in another plane as is best apparent by referring to Figures l, 3 and 4. As shown in Figure l, the forward brushes 107 are all disposed at a similar angle with respect to the axis of the tubular brush supporting members, this being an acute angle of the order of with it being understood that more cleaning surface can be obtained by making this angle greater, but with the consequent disadvantage of increasing friction. Conversely, the angle may be reduced, but the cleaning area is likewise reduced although friction is beneficially lessened.

The rear rank of shafts 106 are supported in longitudinal adjustable relationship upon the rear portion of the tubular brush supporting member 103 by connecting their threaded rear ends by adjustment nuts to the sleeve 117 and a support plate 126. The support plate 126 has an opening 127 so that the interior of the previous supporting member is opened to subject the piston to fluid pressure both on `the interior of the tubular member and on the outside.

The rear rank shafts 106 are of the same type of construction as the shafts 1105 previously described and are shown in Figure 4. rfhey are connected in a similar manner to the tubular brush supporting member by the clips 120. Therefore, similar reference numerals will be employed 4for similar elements. It will, however, be seen that the shaft portions which support the brushes are rcversely bent at an acute angle with respect to the for- Iward rank shafts 105, as appears in Figures l and 2. By such disposition, the brushes are caused to rotate in opposite directions and neutralize any bending force on the tubular member and also give a better cleaning on the interior surface of the pipe line. it will further be noted that the brushes in the rear rank are staggered with respect to the brushes in the front rank to provide full cleaning coverage around the inner periphery of the pipe line and in this manner the gaps left between the brushes in the front rank are cleaned by the brushes in the rear rank.

Use

The application of the use is effected by inserting the pipe line cleaner within the pipe and applying tluid pressure behind it to cause it to be propelled through the pipe and drag the brush elements therewith. As the pipe line cleaner is so moved through the pipe, the frictional contact of the brushes in the first and second ranks will cause their rotation with a reverse rotation being effected between the rst and second or front and rear ranks.

In the embodiment of Figures 1-4, a wide latitude in the traversing of corners is made possible by the llexible tubular body member 103. This flexible member makes it possible to turn short corners and the like that might not be capable of being traversed in other devices. lt will further be understood that a degree of twisting of a portion of the member with respect to another portion is possible due to the flexible nature of the brush supporting member so that a wide degree of adaptability is provided.

lt will accordingly be seen that there has been provided by means of this invention a completely self-contained piston type of pipe cleaner in which the brushes are carried by the piston and are caused to clean the interior of the pipe line by the application of uid pressure to the rear of the device. The structure of the cleaner is simple in nature, yet rugged in construction,`

and relatively inexpensive and is capable of being used by inexperienced personnel.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that certain variations and changes in structure can be made within the scope and teaching of this invention, and such changes and modifications are intended to be included herein in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

l. A pipe line cleaner comprising a piston engageable at its periphery with the interior of a pipe to be cleaned in close fitting relationship with a resilient sealing member carried by said piston forming a seal between the pipe and the periphery of said piston and brush means connected to the rear of the piston, said brush means comprising a plurality of separate cylindrical brushes engageable with the entire inner periphery of the pipe when the piston is forced through the pipe by the application of fluid pressure, said cylindrical brushes being supported by elements extending radially from a brush means supporting member connected to the rear of the piston and extending axially to the rear thereof, said supporting member consisting of a exible and resilient tube capable of bending and twisting movement, and each of said brush supporting elements including a shaft rotatably supporting a brush with the axis thereof disposed at a small acute angle to the axis of the piston.

2. A pipe line cleaner comprising a piston engageable at its periphery with the interior of a pipe to be cleaned in close tting relationship with a resilient sealing member carried by said piston forming a seal between the pipe and the periphery of said piston and brush means connected `to the rear of `the piston, said brush means comprising a plurality of separate cylindrical brushes engageable with the entire inner periphery of the pipe when the piston is forced through the pipe by the application of fluid pressure, said cylindrical brushes being supported by elements extending radially from a brush means supporting member connected to the rear of the piston and extending axially to the rear thereof, said supporting member consisting of a flexible and resilient tube capable of bending and twisting movement, and each of said brush supporting elements including a shaft rotatably `supporting a brush with the axis thereof disposed at a References Cited in the file of this patent small acute angie to the axis of the piston, said shafts and brushes being disposed in multiple ranks comprising UNITED STATES PATENTS A a first rank including a plurality of brushes and support- 597,421 Krueger I an. 18,` 1898 ing shafts uniformly disposed at the same acute angle to 5 953,666 Ingiee Mar. 29, 1910 the piston axis and a second rank including ya plurality 1,966,819 Irvin July 17, 1934 of brushes and supporting shafts uniformly disposed at 2,604,647 Stephens July 29, 1952 an opposite acute angle to the piston shaft with respect to the iirst rank, and said brushes in the second rank FOREIGN PATENTS being staggered with respect to the brushes in the irst 10 466,073 Germany Sept. 27, `1928 rank. 715,254 Great Britain Sept. 8, 1954 

